The Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), the largest community of professional fundraisers in the world, has awarded its highest professional certification, the Advanced Certified Fundraising Executive (ACFRE), to Leah Eustace of Ottawa, Ontario.

Available only to senior-level fundraisers who have worked in the profession for 10 or more years, the ACFRE is a distinguished achievement earned by only 101 professionals since the inception of the program in 1992.

The ACFRE program is the most rigorous certification process available to professional fundraisers. The process includes a comprehensive application, detailing achievements in practice, education, publishing, teaching, and service to the profession; a written examination that measures a candidate’s knowledge of fundraising as well as the philosophical, ethical, and social aspects of philanthropy; a portfolio representing the candidate’s body of professional work; and an oral peer review in which the candidate must articulate a mastery of advanced-level knowledge in fundraising management, leadership, and ethics.

The ACFRE Certification Board of AFP, chaired by Jill A. Pranger, ACFRE, oversees the ACFRE candidate review process. Ms. Eustace was honored for her achievement during AFP’s 51st International Conference on Fundraising on March 23 in San Antonio.

Eustace is a principal with Good Works, a consulting firm that helps nonprofits across Canada transcend the idea of fundraising as transaction, and elevate it into a human connection between donors, causes and charities. Prior to joining Good Works, she held positions with the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, the Aga Khan Foundation, and the Canada-U.S Fulbright Program.

Eustace’s professional and community involvement includes being past-president of the Ottawa Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, and chair-elect of the AFP Foundation for Philanthropy-Canada. She holds a B.A. (Honours) from Trent University and has a Master’s degree in International Relations from the University of Cambridge in the UK.

Eustace both lives and works in the vibrant community of Wellington West in Ottawa.